APPROACHES/PERSPECTIVES ON CURRICULUM IMPLEMENTATION
Lecture-Session 3
Curriculum Implementation and Adaptation- EDCU 6311,
Dr Sharmila Harry
At the end of the session you will be able to:
Describe three perspectives on curriculum implementation
Discuss the challenges of each approach
Suggest possible benefits of using these perspectives during
implementation of a curriculum innovation.
SEVERAL APPROACHES/PERSPECTIVES ON CURRICULUM IMPLEMENTATION CAN
BE USED TO DETERMINE TO WHAT EXTENT CURRICULUM CHANGE SHOULD BE
IMPLEMENTED IN SCHOOL
At the phase of the change process where an innovation/change is to be
implemented in classrooms, it is critical to understand: what is expected of the
implementers when they put the curriculum innovation into practice?
According to Synder, Bolin and Zumwalt, (1992), there are three
approaches/perspectives on implementation:
a) Fidelity perspective
b) Mutual adaptation
c) Curriculum enactment
• Fidelity – the curriculum innovation will be used exactly as designed. It will be
reproduced as developed by the technical experts, using models of curriculum
development which is often objectives-based. The models follow a linear process of
development from objectives to evaluation of whether these objectives have been
attained. Given the objectives, content, organization of the curriculum and learning
experiences must follow.
• Mutual Adaptation – allow adaptation of the innovation, as designed by technical
experts, to meet the needs of specific clients and contexts. Curriculum plans need to be
adapted to the context of specific schools as well as students for which they were
developed. In this approach the planned curriculum, will be adapted by
implementers/users to suit their contexts but only within parameters agreed on by the
developers. Adaptation can take the form of adaptation of technologies, methods,
levels/intensity of use etc.
• Enactment Perspective- In contrast to the two other perspectives, this one focuses on
delineating how the curriculum is shaped by the evolving constructs of teachers and
students.
FIDELITY PERSPECTIVE
perceives curriculum knowledge as being created primarily outside the
classroom by experts who design and develop the curriculum innovation
“…the main intent is to determine the degree of implementation of an
innovation in terms of the extent to which actual use of the innovation
corresponds to intended or planned use and to determine factors which
facilitate and inhibit such implementation” (Fullan& Pomfret. 1977, p. 340)
curriculum change is conceived of as a linear process, with teachers
implementing the innovation as developed in the classroom.
the curriculum is then evaluated to ascertain whether the planned
outcomes have been achieved- the implementation is effective/successful
when teachers follow the curriculum as directed.
the teachers are considered to be passive.
the teacher’s role in the implementation process is that of a consumer-one
who should follow the directions and implement the curriculum according
to those possessing curriculum knowledge as they have designed it.
the curriculum cannot achieve its aim or be fairly evaluated unless the
teacher implements it in the manner in which it was intended to be
implemented.
views curriculum knowledge as something created outside the school
Note that school curricular could be implemented as intended if there were
adequate training prior to the start of the implementation process, with support
and monitoring during the stages of implementation as well as other variables.
MUTAL ADAPTATION
Considers teachers as the key to curriculum concerns by studying how the
innovation is adapted during the implementation process rather than measuring
the degree to which the innovation is implemented as planned (McLaughlin,
1976).
adjustments are made to the curriculum by both curriculum developers and
those who actually use it in the school or classroom context- this implies a
certain amount of negotiation and flexibility on the part of both designers
and practitioners
perceives curriculum knowledge as one facet of a larger, complex social
system that cannot be taken for granted
assumes that implementation should involve adjustments regarding the
needs, interests and skills of the participants and organizations, as well as in
project goals and methods
CURRICULUM ENACTMENT
views curriculum as educational experiences jointly created by student and
teacher
Fullan (1991) postulates that the curriculum enactment perspective
underlying the change does not exist merely in the observable alterations in
behavior, but is also rather a personal developmental process, both for
teacher and student. As such, the enacted curriculum (in the classroom) is
different from that which is written in a curriculum document.
focuses on meaning that students take away from their classroom
experiences.
curriculum implementation as “what actually occurs in the school
classrooms, that is, an ongoing social process comprised of the
interactions of students, teachers, knowledge and milieu” (Cornbleth,
1990, p. 5)
perceives the process of implementing as one of continued growth for both
teacher and student
postulates that there would be no curriculum without teacher and student
both giving to and taking from it in the classroom
perceives that teachers pursue ideas through classroom exploration;
discussions and observations with others and formal discussions
The mutual adaptation and enacted curriculum provide a greater focus on the
role of teachers in implementing curriculum policy.
ACTIVITY:
Identify a curriculum innovation with which you are familiar and suggest what
sort of perspective seems to have informed, or to be informing plans for
implementation. Discuss the challenges you foresee, given the perspective that
is being employed.
Benefits of each approach?
References
Berman, P. & McLaughlin, M.W. (1976) Implementation of Educational
Innovation, The Educational Forum, 40:3, 345-370.
Cronbelt, C. (1990). Curriculum in context. Bristol, PA: Palmer Press.
Fullan, M. (2001). The new meaning of educational change(3rd ed.).
New York: Teachers College Press
Fullan, M. (1991). The new meaning of educational change. London :
Cassell.
Fullan, M. & Pomfret, A. (1977). Research on curriculum and instruction
implementation. Review of Educational Research, 47(1), 335-397.
Fullan & Stiegelbauer (1991). The new meaning of educational change.
(2nd Ed) New York: Teachers College Press.
Ornstein, A.C. & Hunkins, F.P. (2004) Curriculum: Foundations, Principles
and Issues. USA: Pearson.
Snyder, J., Bolin, F., & Zumwalt, K. (1992). Curriculum
Implementation. In P. W. Jackson, (Ed.) Handbook of Research on
Curriculum, 40 (4), 402-435.
